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Larkham wants Brumbies to bounce back

Brumbies head coach Stephen Larkham wants his team to return to winning ways when they take on the Highlanders on Saturday.

The men from Canberra face a difficult trip to Invercargill to meet the defending Super Rugby champions and Larkham is keen to bounce back from recent results.

“We say it every week that every game’s important but we certainly need a lift out of the boys now,” he told the Brumbies' official website.

“Losing two of our last three is certainly not a record that we’re proud of so we’ll be working hard this week but we’ll get a really good balance, make sure we’re getting our preparation right both on and off the field.”

The next three weeks are crucial for the Brumbies with difficult games against the Bulls (Canberra, 6 May) and the Rebels (Melbourne, 13 May) following the Highlanders match. And Larkham is mindful of the Highlanders' play and the strong side they possess.

“There probably a little more structured than most of the New Zealand sides and we’ll address that today [at training],” he said.

“They kick the ball a lot and they’ve got really good kick-chasers. Patrick Osborne and Ben Smith in particular chase the contestable kicks really well, and Aaron Smith is a great controller around the ruck.

“It’s a similar proposition every week, every New Zealand side that you come up against is chocked full of All Blacks and it’s no different this week.

“They’re a very physical side, they bring a hard edge to the game and we’ll try and match it this week.”